TN PETRÓLEO

OAO Lukoil Holdings (LKOH.RS) Russia`s largest private-sector oil producer, and OAO GazpromGazprom Neft (GSPBEX.RS) said Friday they have signed a memorandum of understanding on the creation of a joint venture for upstream cooperation.

The companies first announced their plans for the joint venture, to be 51% controlled by Gazprom Neft, more than a year ago.

The companies said that both sides will have an equal role in managing the company.

The joint venture is going to implement oil and gas projects around Russia, focusing on license acquisition, exploration and production, and the construction and modernization of infrastructure.

The venture has been widely seen by analysts as a way for the state to have indirect control of most of the new projects in Russia that LUKOIL will undertake in future.